Saturday, August 07, 2010

First off, ten points to the first person who gives me the name of the movie that inspired my post title. (The points aren't worth anything, though. It's all about the pride of winning them.) Also, as a reminder, be sure to roll your mouse over the pictures in this post in order to read their captions. I'm quite proud of a few of them this time around.

OK! As those of you connected to me on Facebook or following me on Twitter are aware, I got to hang with Terry O'Quinn again on Saturday, July 31 -- this time on my home turf. Before I talk about that night, however, I have to give a big shout-out to another huge TO'Q fan, Kat S, who runs TerryOQuinn.org. Seeing as how I only spend a few minutes on Facebook each day and therefore don't catch many of my friends' updates on the news feed, I'm sure Lost devotees would agree that it was totally fate -- and not a coincidence -- that a month or so ago when I logged in I spied a message Kat had sent to my man Andy at DarkUFO. She told him that Terry O'Quinn would be appearing at the end of July for a benefit at the Park West. When I saw Kat's message I thought to myself, "Hmm, that's weird -- there's a Park West here in Chicago."

I clicked on the link Kat had passed along to Andy and sure enough, the event was going to be right here in my 'hood -- mere blocks away from my condo. Within five minutes I'd asked my husband if it was OK for us to spring for the kinda expensive VIP tickets that guaranteed time with Terry. As my husband is, um, MY HUSBAND, he knew I was going to buy the tickets no matter what, so he was like, "Sure! Then you can get your picture signed! Go right ahead, my darling! What's that? Noooo, I don't think you're the biggest dork on earth at all. And I have zero regrets about marrying you!"

So I bought the tickets.

But then, as the weeks went by, I grew unsure of whether I'd actually be able to attend. It just so happened that I had to turn in my second-to-last round of edits for my book manuscript on Monday, August 2... but I wasn't able to sit down and start going through the 250-page document until the night before the benefit. D'oh! Even on the 31st I wasn't positive I'd be able to pull it off, and ended up making the decision to go about two hours before the Park West opened its doors. I finally thought, "Hell, I'm only going to get this chance once," and then jumped in the shower to get ready.

Terry was attending the event in order to help raise money for his brother Thomas Quinn's independent film, Using. You can read about the benefit here... and the film here. What's more, the team at Cheeky Chicago wrote a great piece here, and my friends at Hollywood Chicago snapped a very nice head shot of Terry that night, which you can take a look at here.

To sum up the evening, I felt like my three worlds collided. My three worlds being the world of my book, the world of my movie-writing gig for redbox, and the world of Lost. Before the event, Terry had dinner at Chicago's oldest chophouse, Gene & Georgetti, with the lucky winner (and five of his/her friends) of a fund-raising auction. I couldn't help but laugh that of all places in the Windy City to hold the meal with Terry, the powers that be picked Gene & Georgetti. Why? Because this steakhouse also plays a pivotal role in my book. Then, of course, Terry's brother's film was connected to my redbox job writing about movies... and Terry's Lost character is the namesake of the blog you're reading right now (duh). Too... much... to... process!

Anywhoooo, on to the good stuff. Almost immediately after Terry arrived, people started lining up to get a picture with him. I was one of the first people in the queue -- and this truly was not because I was a stalker, it was because the chick running the event came up to me and recommended that I get in line. I did not spend that long chatting with Terry -- only a few minutes -- and truth be told, that was totally fine with me because I was extremely nervous. More nervous, in fact, then when my husband and I ran into him on the Lost set in Oahu in October 2008. I think it was because this time I knew I was going to see him and talk to him and ask him to sign my infamous picture. Back then it was more of a surprise that we ran into him, and so I didn't have time to work myself up about it beforehand. Plus, since I was asking him to sign a picture of us, I figured he would definitely think I was a tad psychotic. All in all, I guess I was a bit embarrassed.

My husband was very confused by how shy I was acting. In the past month, because of the subject of my book, I have had to contact and correspond with a number of very, very intimidating dudes -- some of the most powerful men in the world, believe it or not. And so my husband was like, "You talked to X and Y and survived... and yet you're scared to talk to Terry O'Quinn... even though we've already met him... and we know he's a nice guy!?! I don't get it." Well, my dear friends, I didn't get it, either, but the bottom line is that I was really nervous. I think perhaps it's because, to me, Lost represents a turning point in my life -- if it weren't for the show, I wouldn't have stopped working for The Man and I wouldn't have my redbox job and I wouldn't have written my book. Terry is the person who represents Lost the most to me, because, as you know, his character is my site's namesake. So I think that's why I was freaking out. OK, enough psychoanalyzing.

When it was my turn to get a picture with him, I first asked if he would mind signing my other photo. I explained that it was taken in October 2008 during the filming of "The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham." He acted genuinely excited and said, "I remember that day!" I also told him that I was back in Hawaii at the beginning of this year for the Sunset on the Beach premiere, and helped a fellow blogger, JOpinionated, host a fan party that Jeff Fahey (Frank Lapidus) ended up attending briefly. He laughed and replied, "I think I heard about that..."

Here's the signed picture:

Mission accomplished.

Next, a new picture had to be taken. Quite a change to be standing next to Terry while he was in a suit and tie and I was in a cocktail dress -- as opposed to us both sweating our you-know-whats off in 90-degree weather in downtown Waikiki.

That being said, I'm never going to top my original picture with him, now am I?

After we got the shot, I busted the heck out of there before I broke out in a sweat, a purple flush, and hives (this happened following the Hawaii encounter... but thankfully it was a delayed response about 20 minutes after our run-in). As I was carefully putting my 8 x 10 into a folder, Terry halted the line of admirers and came over to ensure that my husband was able to get a good picture of us. I think he felt bad (for me) that I didn't get to spend more time talking with him, since I was obviously a freakazoid Lost fan. I thanked him for checking and assured him that we did indeed get a nice shot.

Then my girl 0bFuSc8 -- whom I'd met in Hawaii in January and who may just be a bigger fanatic than I am -- had her turn.

She was able to spend quite a while chatting with Terry later on that evening, as she had brought a big ol' stack of Lost memorabilia for him to sign (which she intends to auction off to various charities).

I needed to decompress after the adrenaline rush that came from being face-to-face with "Locke," so we enjoyed some very yummy hors d'oeuvres and drinks while listening to a great band, Aubyn Beth. They performed a special song for the occasion, aptly entitled "Live Together, Die Alone," which they're currently in the process of recording. If you want to hear it once it becomes available, you can follow them on Facebook (note their cute profile pic with Terry!)... and they're also on iTunes.

Later on, Terry's brother Thomas said a few words about Using, and then Terry gave a short speech of support. He brought on stage with him Locke's knife, which was up for grabs in the silent auction. I'm not sure how well you can see it in this picture, but he's holding it (and that's his bro to the left).

I was really happy that ObFuSc8 was there, because not only did my husband and I have a great time hanging out with her and chatting about Lost, but I also needed her encouragement ("encouragement" in the form of being physically dragged) when it came time to DANCE WITH TERRY.

Yes, my dear friends, ObFuSc8, my husband, and I boogied down to "Hey Ya!", "I Gotta Feeling," and "All the Single Ladies," among other tunes, with the Man in Black himself.

I was surprised that:1) He knew all of the words to every song the DJ played, and2) He is a phenomenal dancer.

I am a harsh judge of guys who attempt to dance (this is a fault of mine, and I'm aware of it and am working on it), so I cannot tell you how relieved I was that Terry didn't need to resort to the typical "white dude" moves. He had rhythm, people! He was awesome. The whole night was incredible. I can't believe it happened.

So there you have it, folks. Needless to say, I do not regret taking a break from my manuscript. Thanks again to Kat for unknowingly giving me the heads up, to ObFuSc8 for getting my butt on the dance floor, and to my husband for his undying patience (at least this time HE got a picture with Terry, too).

The epilogue to this tale is that I sat at my laptop, editing away, for over fourteen hours straight on both Sunday and Monday immediately following the Using event. I technically still turned my manuscript in to my publisher on time (very, very late on Monday, my due date), BUT my left shoulder locked up in the process. I've had to have acupuncture and a professional shoulder/rotator-cuff massage to try and get things back to normal, but I'm still quite sore and in pain. The weird thing is that the only other time this happened to my shoulder was right after my day-trip to Oahu when I ran into Terry in 2008. Maybe he makes me come down with The Sickness?

Who knows, but the reality is that I have yet another round of (supposedly final) manuscript edits coming up between August 13 - 23, so in an attempt to not destroy my body -- especially since I still write two posts a day, every week day, for redbox -- I don't intend to start working on my Lost finale post any time soon. That's right, I haven't even had time to start it yet. I gotta focus on projects that pay the bills, my poor doggy who had serious surgery this past week, the ten bazillion visitors we have staying with us this summer, and a ton of other stuff I won't bore you with. But I WILL EVENTUALLY FINISH IT. Since I screwed up majorly by guesstimating that it would be done in June... and then July... I won't let myself be wrong a third time by mentioning a date/month I think it could be finished.

So, that being said, If you are still interested in reading my take on "The End" but don't want to keep checking back to this site every week, you have four options:

1) Friend me on Facebook -- I always link to Long Live Locke posts there.2) Follow me on Twitter -- I will be sure to tweet a link when the post goes live.3) Sign up for emailed posts in the right-hand column of this blog.4) Get the RSS feed for this site -- also accessible in the right-hand column of this blog.

Yep, the ol' shoulder is a-burnin' right about now... and this post is merely 1/1000th the length that my finale post will be (and took me three hours to write). So I need to recuperate -- stat!

You think YOU'RE a fanatic!?!?!?! ...I cried in several spots while reading this post! I'm there with you girl...and it was just SO fabulous you got to see him again and have such an all-out fantastic time!

One of the best things in life is actually meeting someone you've grown to admire and love only to find out that that person really IS "all that"!

Glad he came to your 'hood, gladder (is that a word?) you spent time with him and gladder still you shared it with us!

You are one lucky lady! With a great husband, too. Thanks for taking the time to share this with us. It was so fun to read all about your big night.

...If you lived on an island (any island, not just THE ISLAND) or "at the shore", I'd suggest that you walk barefoot in the sand at least once a day for your shoulder/back problem (it works like a charm), but I suppose there is not much sand on Lake Michigan, even in your rather short summer.

And I loved the Charlie comment, particularly after having watched the Eminem/Rihanna music video with Dom and Megan Fox.

What an awesome experience! He does look damn sharp in that suit. You're so lucky, girl.

Perhaps the shoulder locked up out of being tense? Your body was in shock and giddy and trying to hold yourself together when you met him (both times) - and then you sat prone working (most people have rubbish posture when they type for long periods). I know I would have been hyperventilating, and probably would have passed out of exhaustion as soon as I got home - I have no idea how you kept it together!

I had JUST gotten back from NY when I heard terry was going to be in the windy city. I wasn't willing to drive another 4 hours and get swanked up after driving for two days; anyhoo - GO e and I really hope you fix your shoulder issue, that sucks.

Absolutely fan-fricking-tastic!!! I am sooooo jealous right now it hurts. I would have been so giddy and just lightheaded with joy if I got to cut a rug with Terry O'Quinn! Thank you to infinity for sharing that with us, you really do understand that being a Lost fan, we clamor for stuff like this. The only person that could top Terry O'Quinn for me, would be Matthew Fox. I would pass out if I got to do those things with him. My husband would have to just step aside for him (lol) :)

How awesome to be able to take a break and get to hang out with Terry O'Quinn. You need to take care of things at home and job before you could possibly write "The End". I so look forward to it, but good things are worth waiting for. Take care.

E!I couldn't be more happy for you and totally proud of you!And to see both of you fellow Losties together enjoying time spent with Terry makes me all teary eyed with joy.I am so happy your three worlds collided. The universe does work in strange ways...or does it ;D

The interactions between you and your husband are really humorous to me. I vaguely remember that in Chicago at the Damon, Carlton and a Polar Bear event that he was pretty quiet and reserved. You asking him if you could buy the tickets even though you knew you would anyway cracked me up.

By the way, I really like Jo Garfien and have been following her work recently. Genuine. Honest. Both things everyone should be.

In short, congrats on meeting the actor behind the best character ever.

Sure it's cool to go swanky rich people fund raisers(?) and all (lost), but who has time for things like that (lost)? I mean we all have busy lives (lost), and rarely have time to stop and smell the roses (lost). In closing (lost), good for you for finding that kind of spare time (LOST!!).

Great post e I really enjoy reading your lost blogs (I first came accross them on the darkufo site). They are so witty and humourous and also emotional. I can't wait for "the end" blog but I will!! Good luck with your deadlines and mind your shoulder.

"Terry halted the line of admirers and came over to ensure that my husband was able to get a good picture of us. I think he felt bad (for me) that I didn't get to spend more time talking with him, since I was obviously a freakazoid Lost fan."

I am so happy for you, e! Someone already said it - how awesome to finally meet the person who you have admired from afar, and find out he's every bit as incredible as you imagined he would be. Even though I am looking forward to your recap of the finale, in a way, the longer the post is delayed, the longer Long Live Locke can live on. You have 'according to e' - will you keep this blog after the recap and the release of the DVDs? It's been great to come here and relive the latest episodes with you. If you thought The End of Lost was devastating - just wait until The End of Long Live Locke!!

I'm so glad you got to dance with Terry Oquinn and talk to some of the most powerful men on the planet. Really?? Are you also gonna post copies of the checks you get from your book sales? How bout giving us your thoughts on The End? I guess it's ok to take time to tell us how great things are now that you're not working for the man while leaving the readers who helped make that possible hanging in the wind.

Please note that from here on out I won't be publishing any rude or negative comments from anyone that doesn't sign in with a user account. There's enough negativity in the world -- we don't need any more, especially about something as silly as a Lost post.

It's really easy for people to say mean things when they don't have to own up for them, now isn't it?

Regarding your comment:

1) You clearly have no idea how the publishing industry works if you think I am going to make ANY money from my book -- even if it is a best-seller. Do a little research on how much first-time authors who aren't famous rake in (I use that phrase sarcastically, in case it isn't clear). I'll give you a hint: it's less than I made in my very first job out of college in 1996. I will definitely LOSE money on this endeavor since I have several writing-related expenses already off-setting my extremely small advance. I wrote my book because the event it covers is important... so important that yes, I was in fact contacting some very powerful and influential people about it. You'll understand soon enough.

2) If the fact that I'm not able to post my Lost recap yet bothers you so much, I suggest you just assume I won't ever be able to get to it and stop checking back. Because I still have no idea when I'll get a chance to work on it.

3) If you are implying that the people who have followed my writing over the years in some way helped me be able to start a freelancing career, you are definitely correct. I would not have had the confidence to strike out on my own and leave a job where I actually made good money -- in return for, as I mentioned above, a job where I make hardly any money (but am much happier) -- had it not been for the encouragement of my fellow Lost fans. But I have never run any ads on my site, I've never asked for any donations, and my book has absolutely nothing to do with Lost or pop culture. The people who bought my book do not even know I write about Lost. So I'm sorry to say that LLL readers cannot take credit for getting me a book deal, and the sane ones already know that. The people who truly support me are content to wait for my final Lost post... and they're also the same people who will most likely buy my book even if they aren't interested in its subject at all. Whereas I'm quite positive that people such as yourself who seem to get off on yelling at and harassing me will immediately complain that my final recap sucks -- right after it's posted (even if it doesn't) -- and then I'll never hear from them again. So I don't really feel like I owe you anything and in no way are you responsible for helping me get a publishing deal for a book that has to do with my old job, my education, and my work experience.

You're SO lucky , e! I can't even imagine how I would react if I so much as got in the same ROOM as Terry O'Quinn :)

And to all LOST fans, apparently the owners of LOST are auctioning off EVERY SINGLE PROP that they have EVER used. (Even down to Charlie's passport :D )The auction's gonna be in a disused airport hangar in the Santa Monica area of LA, and it's an international auction, so anyone can bid :O (Unfortunately I don't have that kind of cash to even THINK about getting something :( )

1) Yes, it will be available in most countries (definitely in the UK), but about 4 - 6 weeks after the US pub date of November 1.

2) HECK YES I am using my real name! After spending three years working on this freakin' thing, I'd be crazy not to. In fact, since the book is a retelling of a true story, there are several real people who are the "characters" in it (it's told from my point of view), which is part of the reason why I've had to go through so many rounds of careful editing/legal review.

I will be interested to see your post for the final show. I suspect that it will be a very different post. The urgency of the immediate post following an episode has long since passed, so I guess it will be more reflective.

I also suppose that it will be more emotional. Since it isn't an immediate reaction, it could be more of a goodbye to an old friend...

As I mentioned in the comments thread above, I am swamped with getting ready for my book launch on Nov 1 and haven't even started the Lost finale post yet. I don't know when I will be able to write it, but I do intend to still do it eventually.

Its like having an emotional reunion. I watched the bonus material and in one of the easter eggs Jeff Fahey said he could easily have done three more seasons at least, that's how much he was enjoying himself.

If it feels this bad missing LOST for us fans, just think how bad it is for the people involved.

Its weird watching the sideways story knowing that it is a type of afterlife.

I'm watching it with my son, its the first time for him and you should have seen his face light up when he saw Charlie and Claire again.

I love you.. your the best.. you posts have always been awesome and I have never bashed you in anyway and I am not doing it now.. I just want to say that it is and will potentially always be very sad that if this site (the go to for lost reviews) just never posts a review on the finale. You should maybe try to make some time.. like maybe at 2 am when you are doing nothing else. Cause well it really needs to be completed.

Fear not, I'm working on it. I'm at the part where Locke has his awakening.

It is extremely long already.

The issue is my book hit bookstores 2 weeks early and I am very, very tied up with dealing with that, which needs to be my priority.

Trust me, I want the LOST post done and off of my shoulders MORE THAN ANYONE. I will definitely eventually finish it, and I hope to do so sooner rather than later, but I can make no promises at this point.

I saw the first pic of you with the great To'Q back in '09 and was blown away by the joy in your writing and, obviously, in the picture itself. It's so nice to see it again with the second meeting with him...as a huge Lostie and Locke lover myself, I can understand the feeling! I loved your post(s) and look forward to reading your book. You've been one of the more enjoyable Lost fans to read over the years - thank you!